Steve'n'Bucky
by irite
Summary: A brief look into Bucky Barnes's head after Steve, of all people, rescues him from Hydra. Character study, oneshot.


**My beta, dysprositos, is the absolute best and a big help when I flail about trying to summarize things.**

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They hadn't gotten five minutes alone to catch up since Steve and Bucky had caught up with the rest of the fellas in the clearing Steve had indicated after barely busting out of the Hydra base. Or at least that's who Steve said they were, they hadn't really bothered to identify themselves to their prisoners. Bucky'd just figured Nazis, but here they were, _special_ Nazis. Like the regular ones weren't bad enough.

But really, Bucky was good with not having Steve's attention all the time.

Steve was a _hero_ now, after all.

Bucky'd seen the comic books, heard about the shows. Though he'd been paying more attention to reports of the girls than the fathead they were supposed to be working with.

And he hadn't heard from Steve in a while, but he figured it was just the shit mail.

If he hadn't seen it, he wouldn't have believed it. Never would have connected the two dots.

Steve, _his _Steve, was Captain America. Tights and all, although Steve'd had the good sense to hide those under a pair of pants before going behind enemy lines. Woulda gotten laughed right out of the compound otherwise, probably. The shield was bad enough alone.

He still hadn't wrapped his brain around it, but Bucky thought he was putting a good face on. He joked with the guys, told them he'd be joining them at the bar later, and waited while Steve was debriefed at London headquarters.

If they tried to send Steve back to the sideshow he'd been traveling with, then Bucky was going to do something about that. Didn't know what, not yet, but he was certainly going to do _something_.

But Steve came into the small room that they'd assigned Bucky practically glowing.

"Good news, huh?"

"Yeah. They're giving me a team, we're gonna take out Hydra bases."

Steve said 'we' like it was a sure thing; Bucky kind of wanted to be asked.

"Where's the guys?" Steve looked around like Bucky might be hiding them in this closet.

"Where do you think? At the bar. Where I should be, but I decided I'd wait around for your dumb ass."

"Let's go, then!"

Bucky grabbed his jacket and pulled it on, doing up the buttons quickly.

They walked out the door side-by-side, and Steve threw his arm around Bucky's shoulders.

It was weird; Bucky'd always been the bigger fella. Usually had Steve tucked under his arm and pulled up close to his chest, not the other way around. Bucky still wasn't used to being smaller than Steve. Didn't know if that was something he could ever get used to.

But it was also _Steve_, and so Bucky didn't mind. Too much, anyway.

There was only one bar close by, so that's where they headed, and there, Steve told Bucky he'd be back in a few minutes and headed to the corner table where Bucky could see the guys. Well, hear them, mostly.

They greeted Steve loudly, already tipsy, and he pulled up a chair and bought a round, carrying the many mugs with ease whereas before he would've been likely to drop them.

Bucky got the feeling that _before_ and _after_ was gonna define the rest of Steve's life, and he wasn't so sure that was the best way to live.

Really, Bucky knew he should go sit with everyone else, but Steve'd told him to stay put, so he moved up to the other end of the bar and bought himself a drink instead, taking it back to his seat around the corner.

After a few minutes, Steve joined him, reporting his success with the fellas, and Bucky was ready to make some crap excuse about going back to his unit, just so Steve'd ask him to join his team, but Steve beat him to the punch.

"So how about you, are you ready to follow Captain America into the jaws of death?"

"Hell no. That little guy from Brooklyn who was too dumb not to run away from a fight? I'm following him."

It wasn't an accusation, just pointing out that they were the underdog. But then, Steve'd been the underdog for his whole life, probably wouldn't know how to fight otherwise. And he'd get his fool ass kicked without Bucky there to look after him, damn it.

Steve grinned so big at Bucky when he heard the answer that it took away all the hurt at Bucky not being asked first, before the other fellas.

And went a long way to ease the sting of Bucky being ignored by Steve's new girl (no matter what Steve said about waiting 'til the war was over to ask her dancing, she was Steve's girl).

They were still Steve'n'Bucky, like they'd always been.

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**I just want to make clear that Peggy is more than "Steve's girl," but Bucky is a product of his times and might not see that. Yet.**


End file.
